The National Association of Environmental Professionals (NAEP) will be recognizing significant achievements in environmental excellence at the 2016 Conference. Through nominations received and reviewed by an NAEP national committee, selected recipients will be recognized for their noteworthy accomplishments in NEPA Excellence, Environmental Management, Public Involvement, Conservation Programs, Environmental Education, Planning, Stewardship, and Best Available Technologies, as well as The President’s Award.

President’s Award -

Project Name: Chennai Metro Rail Project

Presented to: Mr. C. Kannan

Description of Project:Chennai Metropolis has been growing rapidly and the traffic volumes on the roads have also been increasing enormously. Hence the need for a new rail based rapid transport system has been felt and towards this objective the Government of Tamil Nadu has decided to implement the Chennai Metro Rail Project. This project aims at providing the people of Chennai with a fast, reliable, convenient, efficient, modern and economical mode of public transport, which is properly integrated with other forms of public and private transport including buses, sub-urban trains and MRTS.

The Chennai Metro Rail Project is a prestigious project being built to International Standards in Tamil Nadu, India. The system is approximately 45km long with about 50 % in elevated and 50 % underground sections.

The Chennai Metro Rail Project accord highest priority to the protection of environment while building a world class Metro system for the city of Chennai

During the execution phase of this project, we have planted approximately more than 68,000 saplings having survival rate of 77.7% Apart from this we were engaged in performing transplantation of rare endangered plant species with a 100% survival rate. By doing so there was a substantial increase in the green cover in around the Chennai.

A large number of trees have been planted in between the course of this project which will provide fresh air, shelter during summers, a good landscape and will help in curbing out pollution. These practices also generate employment to the local people which in turn can improve their economic condition.

Description of Project:Over the last half century, Tampa Bay’s coastline has seen a sharp decline in native habitats due to urbanization. The Rookery at Perico Preserve has transformed fallow farmland into a rich mixture of natural areas including creation and restoration of maritime hammock, coastal scrub dunes, saltmarsh, mangrove, and seagrass meadows with more than 100 plant species to return botanical diversity to this site. The creation of seagrass habitat from uplands as advance mitigation for public infrastructure projects is unique and represents a commitment by Manatee County leadership to long-term infrastructure planning and improvement of fish and wildlife habitats in the region.

Recreational users of the trails on the site have the opportunity to view wildlife, including a constructed bird rookery island in the basin, paddlers from other areas will have access to view habitats from the water, anglers will benefit from the improved fish nursery habitat of the seagrasses and mangroves, and Tampa Bay residents (including fish and wildlife) will have a rare gem of coastal habitat to enjoy for generations.

Description of Project: The California Department of Food & Agriculture’s (“CDFA’s”) Statewide Plant Pest Prevention and Management Program (“Statewide Program”) is a comprehensive statewide plan for the prevention and management of agricultural plant pests in California. Plant pests represent a major threat to California’s economy and environment, and due to their rapid reproduction and spread upon introduction, new detections within the state are often true emergencies. The Statewide Program Environmental Impact Report (“PEIR”) evaluates all of the activities included under the Statewide Program, from statewide trapping surveys to promulgation of quarantine regulations to rapid response eradication activities. The comprehensive human health and ecological risk assessments conducted for the PEIR modeled hundreds of possible pest management scenarios that could occur under the Statewide Program and modified scenarios or incorporated mitigation measures to ensure proposed activities are safe. The PEIR provides CEQA coverage for all of CDFA’s plant pest prevention and management activities, including those rapid response activities that previously required the use of CEQA exemptions, and incorporates an innovative CEQA tiering strategy and checklist to allow the incorporation of new technologies and pest programs as they may become available or are introduced in the future.

The public involvement program included an innovative mix of outreach approaches matched with the unique demographic conditions in the corridor, applied creative video strategies featuring citizen input, used engaging and customized social media messaging, and provided new interactive website technology. A comprehensive Public Engagement Plan defined issues, concerns, challenges, target audiences, responsibilities and program elements. A monthly reporting tool called the “Public Involvement Interaction Index (PI3)” allowed the team to set and monitor achievement of the project’s outreach goals.

Public meetings and video interviews of transit riders provided unique insights into system needs and demonstrated participant diversity. Twitter and Facebook messages created a “buzz” by sharing information and perspectives that directed participants to upcoming community involvement opportunities, the project video series and website updates. The project website featured an innovative and interactive tool that allowed users to explore alternatives by matching user choices with associated outcomes, and compare tradeoffs with different choices and perspectives.

Description of Project:Lakeshore Recycling Systems (LRS) is proud of its innovative facilities, and with their advanced practices, LRS controls nearly 2 million tons of Chicagoland’s outbound commercial and residential waste, or 32% of the area footprint. LRS successfully keeps more than 800,000 tons out of landfills by recycling or diverting materials. To increase the Heartland facility’s potential and coincide with LRS’ promise to deliver exceptional service and cutting-edge technology to its customers, this facility has been expanded over 40,000 square feet to include a new Machinex single-stream system. LRS purchased and installed the new $8M single-stream system with the capability to sort, separate and allocate nearly 20 tons of waste per hour, or 300 tons a day. The system collects well over 110,000 tons of high-grade residential and commercial single-stream recyclables: plastics, glass, metals and paper, to generate a high quantity of recyclables for local and international outlets. Single-stream recycling allows recyclable materials such as paper, glass, cardboard and plastic to be mixed, or co-mingled, in one container without being separated. To fuel a sustainable future in Chicagoland, LRS continues to dramatically increase Chicago's waste diversion rates by aggressively investing in new types of technologies.

Description of Project:The restoration of the Linnean Park tributary and the daylighting and restoration of Broad branch are two linked projects in Northwest, Washington DC. The goal of this effort was to restore in-stream habitat and improve the urban hydrology of these two tributaries that flow to Rock Creek. The project incorporated the recreation of a stream channel through the daylighting of a storm drainage system, integration with upstream BMP's to control runoff, commitment to post restoration monitoring, and overcoming the difficultly of working in an ultra-urban setting.

Description of Project:Healthy soil is the foundation of life. To meet the projected needs of the world’s burgeoning population in a sustainable way, improving the health and productivity of our soil is essential. Moreover, improving the health of the soil will also lead to continental-scale improvements in water, air, and wildlife—all while enhancing long-term agricultural production. Improving the nation’s soil health is one of the most important conservation endeavors of our time. Encouraging farmers to adopt soil health management systems is the primary goal of the campaign. The estimated five-fold increase in soil health system adoption (10 million acres) during the first two years of the campaign, is clearly remarkable. Thanks to the campaign’s success (and the work of farmers who have implemented soil health management systems on these 10 million acres of cropland) the U.S. is now saving, according to estimates, 9 million tons of top soil; sequestering 1 million pounds of carbon and reducing nitrogen loss to rivers and lakes by 150 million pounds annually. Moreover, the campaign is positioned to help harvest even more benefits in the months and years ahead.

Description of Project:You are bound to get funny looks when you use the phrases “nuclear weapons” and “public trails” in the same sentence. That is, unless you are talking about the Trails Management Program at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), where both have in common the idea of stewardship. In the case of the former, it is “stockpile stewardship”, a major National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) responsibility, and the primary mission of the Laboratory. In the latter case, it is the stewardship of the unique landscape and natural resources of the Pajarito Plateau. Since 2003, the LANL Trails Management Program has strived to balance public recreational preferences with Laboratory operational requirements. The LANL Trails Working Group has met regularly in this regard and consists of representatives from NNSA, Bandelier National Monument, the United States Forest Service, Los Alamos County, local residents and stakeholders, San Ildefonso Pueblo, and subject matter experts. The LANL Trails Management Program continues to provide a sound pathway through policy guidance, implementing trail closures and maintenance, coordinating public education, and assuring regulatory compliance and protection.

Planning Integration Award –

Project Name: National Greater Sage-Grouse Conservation Strategy and Land Use Plans

Description of Project:In an unprecedented collaborative planning effort, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the US Forest Service prepared land use plans that will reduce threats to the greater sage-grouse, conserve key sagebrush habitat, and promote sustainable economic development in the West. The plans focus on conserving Priority Habitat areas that have been identified as having the highest value to maintaining the species. This was a critical component that helped the US Fish and Wildlife Service conclude that the rangeland bird no longer warrants protection under the Endangered Species Act.

Greater sage-grouse habitat covers 165 million acres across 11 states in the West, a loss of 56 percent of the species’ historic range. At one time, the greater sage-grouse population likely numbered in the millions, but it is estimated to have dwindled to 200,000 to 500,000 individuals range-wide. In additional to greater sage-grouse, more than 350 other wildlife species depend on healthy sagebrush-steppe landscapes.

As part of their proactive partnership to conserve this uniquely American habitat, the BLM and Forest Service prepared 15 environmental impact statements and revised or amended over 80 land use plans in 10 states.